Crystal River current., 1887-03-26
HUNG At THE YARD-ARm.
The story Of til. nutiny o. til. Brig se..ers

shadow of q great sorrow. Her name
is Margaret E. Cromwell and she is
the widow OF Samuel Cromwell, one
of the Inflated seamen who were exc
cuted for mutiny on board the United
States brig Somers in the summer of
1912. Mrs Cromwellis now 76 wears
old. She is OF tall, commanding fig
ure, and still retains traces OF former
| beauty. In December, 1910, she mar
ried Samuel Cromwell, who came from
Smithtown, Va, and who had for thir-
teen years been in the United States
naval service. Cromwell's duties al
lowed him but little time to enjoy the
society OF his bride, and in October,
1912, the Somers, on which he was
acting as boatswain and instructor,
sailed from the Azores, where she was
then stationed, with dispatches tor
the sloop-of-war Vandalia, stationed
on the African coast. The Somers
touched at Tenneriffe and Porto Pra-
va, and thence sailed to Liberia, where,
having accomplished the object of her
voyage, she started on her return for
the United States by way of st. Thom-
as.
The crew OF the Somers consisted OF
eighty apprentices, eighteen ordinary
seamen, five or six midshipmen and a
sergeant-at-arms. She was command
ed by First Lieutenant Alexander Nc
Kenzie and Lieut.. Gansevoort was
her second officer. One of the mid.
shipmen was alad of 10, named Philip
Spencer. He was a son of the Secre-
tary OF the Navy, and had had about
n years experience in the service.
Young Spencer was taken on board
much against the wishes of Capt.
Mckenzie, some say because he
wanted the position held by Spencer
for nephew of his own, and
others because he had good reasons
for suspecting that the lad was trea-
cherous. However this may be there
is no question as to the fact that Capt.
Mckenzie regarded Spencer with ex-
cessive dislike. Spencer had defect
in one of his eyes and the captain was
constantly twitting him about it.
Samuel Cromwell was q great chum
OF Spencer's, as was also a man named
Small, who was master at arms. On
October 26, when the Somers, on her
way back to the United States, was
| about 500 miles from St. Thoms
Island Lieut.. Gansevoort went to
Capt. Mckenzie and told him that he
had discovered a plot to capture the
vessel and to turn her into a pirate.
| Spencer, he said, was the leader, and
Cromwell and Small prominently con-
nected with it. The story had been
told to him by Assistant Purser Wales.
Spencer, Wales said, asked him ii
he feared death, and he replied in such
a manner as to draw from him full
disclosure OF the plot. He (Spencer)
then told him that he was leagued
| with n hOIt ua fvy r,f t,o 80
the vessel, after killing the officers and
such OF the remaining crew as would
not join in the conspiracy. His pur-
| pose then was to take the vessel to
| the Isle of Pines, fit her up as pirate
and start out under the black flag,
attacking only such vessels as they
were sure OF capturing. Wales also
stated that Spencer said that he had
a full plan OF the operations in his
cravat and that he had promised to
disclose them to him subsequently,.
| Capt. Mckenzie at first treated the
communication with derision, but at
the same time caused strict wat ch to
be kept on Spencer, whose subsequent
conduct aroused his suspicious.
He was seen examining a map of
the West Indies, and asked DR..
Lecoque, the ships surgeon, questions
about the Isle OF Pines. According to
capt. Mckenzie's account, Spencer,
| Cromwell and Small were found to
have held nightly conferences, and it
was discovered that the former had
| given money, tobacco and brandy to
some of the crew. These circumstances
gave weight to Wales, story and Nc
kenz;e ordered Spencer upon the
quarter deck and related what he had
| heard. Spencer, it is said, admitted
the conversation with Wales, but said
he had been joking. Nc. Kenzie told him
it was a very serious joke and might
cost him his life. His cravat was
then examined, but no papers were
found. Spencer was placed in double
irons. his sword taken from him and
all communication between him and
the crew forbidden under penalty of
instant death. That evening Crom-
well and Small were also ironed and
confined and increased vigilance en-
joined upon the officers.
| Capt. Mckenzie then sent O. circular
to each of the ships officers 1.-THE mid.
shipmenwere excepted) asking them for
their opinion as to what should be done
The answer in each case was that the
three men should be put to death.
The men were told to prepare for their
doom, and it is said that Spencer and
Small then confessed that the sentence
was just in their own cases, but that
Cromwell was innocent. It was thougt,
however, that Cromwell was equally
guilty with the Others, and the three
men were hung from the yard-arm.
Mrs. Cromwell's story, differs con-
siderabIy from the accounts published
at the time, from which the above
was partly taken. She says that the
saptainhad q peculiar srudge against
Cromwell and Small because they
were Spencer's intimate friends.
"ln the latter part of November,
184c," Mrs. Cromwell said, zone of
J the crew having been detected in steal
ing was put in irons. Knowing the